hey guys, first timer here with a question. what is LST? why do it? i have searched already and have only found blurry photos. if someone could explain it to me, or point me in the direction of a nice photo, id appreciate it.
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hey guys, first timer here with a question. what is LST? why do it? i have searched already and have only found blurry photos. if someone could explain it to me, or point me in the direction of a nice photo, id appreciate it.
LST - Low stress training or least stress training
simply by taking your plant and holding it down while it grows will cause the side branches to become larger and if stayed this way will then produce another cola like the main stem....
Its simply training your plant to get the most light in areas that would normally take longer to develop.
There is a link around here some place, i will look for it, that tells you all you need to know, if i can find it i will post here in more detail.
Check my grow log, i have a pic there of my current LST plant.
STEP 1 : Grow your plant from Seed or Clone to 3 or 4 leaf sets, some use 5 but i always use 3 because after 3rd leaf set the main stem starts to harden and it will be harder to bend over your plant properly without breaking the main stem.
STEP 2 : Using a metal hook (i cut small sections of cloths hanger and bend a U shape at the end as a hook) bend over your plant with metal hook at the last internode (space between the last set of fanleafs and the next to last) and stick the metal hook into your dirt to hold down the stem.
STEP 3 : This is really not a step, just waiting time... Take note of how the top of the plant that was bent down will bend back upwards towards the light, this could take anywhere from 3 hours to 1 day. Under my 1000 Watt Metal Halide light it does it in under 3 hours.
STEP 4 : Veg and dont tie down until you have a new leaf set. You will notice Side branching has started already because good light is getting to the main stem areas next to each fanleaf stem intersection with the main stem.
STEP 5 : Depending on your starting pot size you may have to transplant. If you started out with a large pot, repeat step 2 over and over again holding the main stem down with hooks until you reach the end of the pot. In this illustration to save time and drawings, i started out with a small pot and it reached the end of the pot after the first tiedown. I repotted it into a 10 inch pot which will be my final pot size for this plant in order for me to continue the LST Bends around the inside edge of the pot.
STEP 6 : Now that your new leaf set has formed you have enough length in growth since the first bend(s) to allow you to start bending the stem horizontally around the inside edge of the pot. Use metal hooks again to keep this bend in place. Side branches should be coming along very nicely.
STEP 7 : Continue repeating steps 4 and 6, allowing the plant to grow and then keep tieing it down along the inside edge of pot using metal hooks (or whatever your using) Side branches should be forming and growing up towards the light.
STEP 8 : Continue to repeat step 7 until you are all the way around the pot... when you reach the point where your plant first met the edge of the plant Top the plant (cut off the very top of the plant ) and hold it down horizontally with a metal hook.... During all this time of repeating step 7 you should also be tieing down horizontally the new branches that have formed from the main stem as much as possible until you use up as much space as possible inside the pot as well , the outter branches growing over the outside edge of the pot you can hold down as well with string to keep those tops even with the inner branches.
STEP 9 : After you have used up all possible space inside the pot (or your eggcrate) its time to just let it flower.. This is a side view of how it will and should look by that time with all the side branches growing upwards towards the light.... these will all become Collas unlike a non LST plant will only have one colla.
During flowering and even before due to lack of light on the main stem fan leafs which is all the way to the bottom almost against the soil those fanleafs will die off anyways, i usually cut these off the main stem right after the branch has grown out in that area, keeps things neat down below where you will need good airflow during flowering.. so go ahead and take off any fanleafs coming off the main stem that is going around the inside edge of the pot.
Set you timer to 12/12 and watch it bloom.
STEP 10 :Two days before we harvest, Leave the lights OFF. dont let light touch them. When you do this, the female plants think there dieing(winter is comming) and extract all the Resin (THC) out of there system, thus making stronger more potent buds with the same tast.
STEP 11: HARVEST!! if you followed step 10 the buds will be covered in THC crystals. they will be beautiful, have a NICE SMOKE
Make sure you have just watered your plants, they bend easier and tend not to snap.
! hope i help some people on the method of LST and its benefits
here is a link of my finished LST work.
lets try this agen.
http://boards.cannabis.com/cannabis-...ch-1-love.html
thanks guys, im working on my 6th leaf set (with some undergrowth) and i just bent mine down. it is almost bent down to 90 degrees. (sorry no pics). im also gettin a case of spider mites:( and im gonna spray them. but anyway is this still the right time to Lst? ehrn will it try straightening back upwards? will i get another main stem (or will one of the undergrowth start growin into a main stem)?
thanks
to be honest with you, if this is your very first grow, i wouldnt recommend lst'n your plants, get at least one grow under your belt so you know what to expect, and then try it. If you have a plant now that is getting up there, when the lower branches are long enough, lets say somewhere in the 3-5 inch range, clip those off and make clones, that way when your one plant now is going into flower, and you have one veg stage under your belt, simply train that clone.... just a suggestion, but you can continue to LST your plant now, but with mites and other things that may come up it could get a little tricky.
yeah, well i did sign off after my post last night, so i couldnt read your last one..... and i LST'd my gal. now the lower branches are creepin up toward the light. i think this was a good move, it looks great. i woulda listened to ya but i didnt check the thread. guess i gotta get some pics here soon.
its not a bad thing that you did it, just be ready to respond if something happens, thats all. You will see all those side branches pop'n up and reaching for that light (good sign). just remember to tie down those branches as they come up, you will want to try and get the canopy (the top of all your branches) as even as possible. Other than that your on your way.......
good luck on your grow :thumbsup:
hell yah thats the same way I did mine.and she turned out very nice.Quote:
Originally Posted by whatsthatsmell
Thats awesome man, I plan to LST my plants also. Did you do anything out of the ordinary ? Your results look better then normal! If you did, i'd sure as hell like to know.
Back from post #3, do you think you could add some pictures to illustrate the steps you described?